The present invention relates to an image reading device provided with a document convey-read mode for reading an image of a document while conveying the document and to an image forming apparatus provided with the image reading device.
As described in Japanese Patent Unexamined Publication No. 2010-63003 bulletin, for instance, an image reading device has been known conventionally that is provided with a stationary document read mode for reading an image of a document placed on top of a first document table, and a document convey-read mode for reading an image of a document on top of a second document table while conveying the document placed on a document load tray piece by piece.
In such an image reading device that is provided with both the stationary document read mode and the document convey-read mode, the first document table and the second document table are disposed at the same height in order to share an image reading section within both of the above-mentioned read modes.
Among such conventional image reading devices, there is one in which a document receiving tray is disposed above the first document table, in which a document load tray is disposed above the document receiving tray, and in which a document conveying path extending from the document load tray to the document receiving tray is curved. By so doing, miniaturization of the image reading device has been attempted in conventional image reading devices.
However, in the conventional image reading devices, because the document conveying path is curved, a head edge portion of a document rubs against the document conveying path when a thick document such as card is conveyed in the document convey-read mode; so that there is a risk that conveyance failure such as paper jamming of the document and/or instability of conveyance speed occurs. The document conveyance failure gives rise to an occurrence of reading image failure such as inability to acquire a reading image and/or deterioration of reading image quality.
Also, even in a case where the document load tray and the document receiving tray are arranged in a transverse direction rather than vertical direction, and where the second document table is disposed in the same plane that the first document table defines as in conventional image reading devices, a curved portion occurs in a document conveying path that includes the second document table in an attempt to have the document conveying path disposed avoiding the first document table. Therefore, there is a risk that the reading image failure occurs caused by the document conveyance failure when a document is a thick one.
The present invention is directed to providing an image reading device capable of suppressing reading image failure caused by conveyance failure of a thick document in a document convey-read mode, and an image forming apparatus provided with the image reading device.